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Back with chapter two! Thanks to my reviewers! I was starting to wonder if maybe this story wasn’t very appealing because for the longest time I didn’t receive any reviews, but then I found out that fanfiction wasn’t working or something or the emails were late…I don’t know…
Anyway, thanks to my splendidly lovely reviewers!
The Midnight Phantomess, Plushiemon, Writer's-BlockDP, XxMidnightWolfxX, Andrew Laplante, Me-against-the-world, XxFadedxMemoriesxX, PotterPhan21, TexasDreamer01, Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet, Petitio Principii, Kantrix Gabriel, Kybo, December's Rose, Kairi7, dArkliTe-sPirit, cordria, Linda, katiesparks, Catadmin, Chris Brown's Number 1 Gurl
Hee hee, I love the ending to this one. It’s almost humorous. Surprising actually, since later this story gets so dramatic…
It’s The Fear
Give it a reason, to give it its might
Chapter Two
“Oh, don’t be such a killjoy Danny,” Jazz scolded, her eyes narrowed as her younger brother heaved his backpack into the back of the Fenton GAV. “Getting your homework in advance only means you can get it done earlier, rather than having all that work to do when you get back.”
He shot her a look. “I’d prefer not to have any at all. Lancer obviously doesn’t—understand—the meaning—of—vacation.” He spoke nearly as haphazardly as he was moving, throwing his shoulder into it; it finally managed to fit, which was surprising. It was full of text books, notebooks, and excess homework and weighed at least seventy pounds he guessed. The compartment he’d shoved it into wouldn’t even close. Sighing, he sat down on the tailgate.
“Why are you putting it back there anyway?” she asked, sitting beside him. “We’ll be on the road for at least six hours or more. You could be doing some work in the car. Then you won’t have to worry about it later.”
He laughed, staring at her incredulously. “You’re kidding, right?”
She made a face and then gave a shrill cry. “Whatever…”
“Not driving each other nuts already, are we?” Maddie said, appearing beside them with a suitcase in her arms. She grinned, already doubting her question’s answer. “All packed and ready to go?”
“You seem really excited about this,” Jazz blurted, one eyebrow raised.
“Of course I am. A family vacation is just what we need. Maybe your father and I can teach you a few more things. Who knows what we’ll come up against. It should be fun, hunting all those ghosts, huh?”
Danny tried not to look guilty, finding her eyes upon him. “Yeah, right,” he said, almost too quickly. He caught himself and cleared his throat.
“Well, really…” Maddie sat down between them. “I was afraid for a moment you wouldn’t want to go. I know that with all of our work, you should know a few things about…going out and fighting these things, but…you’re rather inexperienced.” She didn’t notice the look the two siblings shared. “I just suppose I don’t want to see you hurt.”
“We’ll be okay mom. I’m nowhere near a Fenton Thermos, so...” Jazz laughed hysterically.
Danny’s eyes widened as Maddie’s expression showed she was confused. He cleared his throat and playfully pretended to roll his eyes. “She’s a basket case, I wouldn’t ask.”
Maddie grinned at him. “I won’t,” she whispered, patting his leg. She slid off the tailgate and turned to them both. “I’ll go round up your father and then I think all we’ll have to do is stop near the gas station and we’ll be off.”
“Cool,” he said, sort of relieved the subject had been changed. His mother walked off and he switched his narrowed eyes onto his sister, glaring.
She instantly cringed, shifting guiltily. “I’m sorry, I spaced.”
“Yeah, I noticed,” he said. “Let’s just plaster on your forehead “the only reason I got to use the Fenton Thermos in the first place was because my younger brother is half ghost and we decided to follow him everywhere. And it wasn’t that funny anyway.”
“Oh, come on, it was kind of funny,” she said, trying not to laugh. He shook his head, staring away from her and she softened. “I’m sorry Danny…I should have been thinking.”
“You mean for once you weren’t thinking?” He grinned slyly.
“You’re not mad?” she asked.
“No, not really,” he replied. He reached back into the cooler and dug out a can of cream soda. “Ooh…yes…”
“Don’t drink that.”
He threw her another look. “And why not?”
“Because when you get in the car, you’ll fall asleep and then you’ll snore…Loudly…” she said, throwing emphasis onto the word.
“This stuff is nothing but sugar—it’s caffeinated…meaning, I will be very…extremely caffeinated…” He grinned, starting to open it, but she smacked his hand again.
“Don’t think I won’t take that away from you.”
“You want some, just admit it. That’s the only reason you’re making a big deal,” he said, catching on to what he figured was her master plan.
“Oh, don’t be stupid. That’s so unhealthy for you. Like you said, it’s pure sugar.”
He popped the can lid, shrugging. “Suit yourself.” He circled his finger around the rim with a mischievous glimmer in his eyes and then held it near his nose, taking a deep breath. “Hmm…smells good…”
She shifted again, trying to ignore him, but then sighed, jumped from the tailgate, and stole it away from him. “Give me that,” she said before taking a long drink.
“Hey, you were supposed to get your own.”
“You’ve got to be a little smarter than that little brother,” she replied, licking her lips. “But you were right about one thing—this is good.” Before he could say anything else, she walked away, the can still in her hands.
He stood up and closed the back of the van, securing it with a Fenton Bar, which was basically code for “safety hatch with the word Fenton in front of it.”
“There you are,” Maddie said as he came around the corner. She didn’t realize she’d nearly given him a heart attack in the process. “All ready?” A few feet away, Jack Fenton was locking the door to their house.
“Yep,” he answered.
“Yay, this is going to be so fun!” Danny finally thought Jazz might have had a point earlier when she’d questioned it. Maddie did seem to be a bit more excited than her usual self; she loved vacations and field trips, but this time, it seemed different. She kissed the top of his head and, slightly dazed, he glanced back at her, but by the time he did, she was already hopping into the front passenger seat.
Even more thrown off, he decided not to question anything and spoil her mood. He climbed into the GAV and sat in the seat in front and diagonally across from Jazz. “Leg room,” he sighed happily, setting his feet on the empty seat beside him.
“Great; you’re going to fall asleep and then I’m going to have to listen to you snoring all the way there.”
“Number one, that’s what headphones are,” he countered. “Number two, what makes you think I’m going to fall asleep?”
“Because—if you’re not pressing any buttons on here that unleash an attack on me or playing “I Spy” the imaginary version, then you’re zonked out. It’s just how you are.”
“That is so not—I am not.”
“Are too.”
“Kids,” Maddie groaned, glancing back at them. “We haven’t even gotten out of our driveway, will you relax?”
Jazz glared at Danny, who shrugged and then pulled his headphones and his cd player out from his other bag he’d brought. One that included no homework—at all. He stared out the window as Amity Park flew by, wondering what Sam and Tucker would do while he was gone. He wished that they could have come along, but his mother had made him feel so guilty; and he was pretty sure that she hadn’t even tried to do it, but she had.
He really didn’t mean to be distant sometimes, it was just…keeping the secret was a big deal. He knew he should tell them, he’d already seen their reactions, hadn’t he? But he was afraid of what could happen after the fact. They wouldn’t like it forever…ghosts were what they hunted. They didn’t intentionally do things like eat breakfast with them or have a conversation about baseball or something between “pass the milk” and “who ate the last of the Crispix?” It would just be…awkward.
Even he knew it was hopeless to think about the same thing over and over and he tried instead to think about the vacation instead. If by some, lucky chance, this really turned out to be such a vacation, he was going to treat it so. Which meant, no studying, no books, and hopefully…no ghosts.
At least not ones he was going to fight. He was certain that his parents would take care of most of them. He could take one or two at the most…but if they didn’t know what he was, he didn’t have to be a threat to them, and maybe actually have a decent vacation. No Technus, Skulker, Ember…heck, no Vlad.
Yeah right…he thought bitterly. The perfect vacation? As if that would really happen. And sure, he didn’t mind battling a few ghosts or two, but fifteen was a bit much…even if he’d fought more. For a vacation it seemed a bit much at least. What if they sensed him for what he was immediately? Sure, the other ghosts he’d come across hadn’t, but he was also sure that these ghosts were different.
“So what’s so special about this hotel Mom?” he decided to ask. “I mean, why are the ghosts attracted to it?”
Maddie smiled broadly. “Ghosts make their homes where they’d like because they have some connection to it. An eye witness that stayed in the hotel for a night viewed two young ghost lovers arguing passionately before they disappeared. Some of them just have pasts that haunt them, and so their spirits remain behind. This hotel must be special to them.”
“So, a bunch of them died in the hotel?” Jazz asked, listening. “How?”
“Not necessarily in the hotel,” she replied. “Some of them, like the young lovers for example, may have had their last fight in the hotel. Maybe they’re trying to finish it, but can’t because of the spiritual imbalance that stops it from happening.”
“And we’re going to finish it for them,” Jack added.
“What—how?” Danny wondered, getting a bad feeling.
“Well, these ghosts are starting to freak some guests out. It’s creating a bad reputation for the hotel,” she said. “Is something wrong?”
Danny figured she’d probably seen his facial reaction, but couldn’t hold back his concern. “So, you’re…going to do what with them?”
“Give them a new home,” she said. “Relocate them into the Ghost Zone.”
“But…won’t they come back? I mean, you said they were connected, so couldn’t they find their way back?”
Jazz cleared her throat. “Danny, I—”
“Normally, they would, yes, but your father and I are making sure that they don’t. We’re creating what we call the “Fenton Ferrari.”
“I named it,” Jack put in.
She laughed. “It would block any spirits from going into the hotel. It would shatter any bonds that keep the ghosts there.”
“You’re setting them free then?” he asked, surprised. But his shock didn’t last long.
Maddie laughed again, her hand over her chest. “Oh, Danny, please. That’s only half of what we’re doing. We’re ghost hunters, remember?”
Danny stared. “Wait, you’re setting them free and taking them from their home only so you can hunt them down?”
“Danny,” Jazz intervened fast. “What I think mom’s trying to do is—”
“Of course we are. The ghosts won’t vanish on their own. Well, not in that way at least,” she told him.
“But…what if they’re not dangerous? What if they just need—” He trailed off, honestly thinking, what if all they needed was someone to set them free? Sure, some of the ghosts might be hostile, but maybe, just maybe they wouldn’t cause anyone harm…His mother had said that some ghosts just needed to fix their past mistakes.
He could understand easily…
“Danny sweetheart, what are you trying to say?” Maddie was confused, and even more, looked hurt.
“Nothing,” he said, suddenly noticing Jazz’s wide-eyed stare. “I was just…thinking I guess.” He wondered how long he’d rattled on, protecting ghosts. The last thing he needed was his parents to give him a lecture on how ghosts were evil and full of “negative energy.”
His mother stared at him for the longest time before giving him a small smile and then turning around, giving directions to Jack. He tugged nervously on his headphones, feeling suddenly uncomfortable.
“Overprotective much?” Jazz whispered, pretending to lean over to get something in her bag so they could talk. “And you think I’m obvious…”
Instead of replying, he chose to glare at her and sighed, pulling his headphones on at last and turning the music up. Maddie glanced back at him and he forced a smile as she smiled back, but then turned again.
This was going to be an interesting week…
Intelligent Haunting: Activity that takes place around people or locations that is caused by an intelligent or conscious spirit. Best defined as the personality of someone who has died and whose spirit has not crossed over to the other side. This spirit will interact with witnesses at a location and attempt to make its presence known through repeated phenomena of sights, sounds, feelings, and the movement of physical objects.
-- from The Ghost Hunter’s Guidebook, by Troy Taylor, pg 204
Danny groaned, opening his eyes to near darkness. The Fenton GAV had stopped and through one window, he could see a disappearing sunset and through the other, was the hotel.
“Holy crap,” he said, his mouth dropping open.
The Kindred Images Hotel was freaking huge. It was a total of eight stories tall and nearly three football fields wide. Dark windows were inset everywhere and the whole place had an “olden days” look to it. Dim lights lit up the entrance and he sat up, checking out the tennis court on the east side. In the distance, a small creek leading down to a lake, had been set with lights and the water seemed to sparkle. Parked cars were on the east side and he noticed that there were only two of them, not including the GAV.
“Big, isn’t it?” Maddie asked, still sitting up front. “We wanted to wake you up as we were coming over the hill, but you were sleeping pretty well.”
“Yeah, snoring for three hours straight, just like I said,” Jazz grumbled behind him. “I knew you would.”
“Alright, let’s go over some rules,” Maddie suddenly said, turning on the light in the GAV. Danny blinked in the random brightness, trying to adjust.
“Rules?” Jazz asked.
“Yes, rules. Family rules,” she said. “It’ll make our holiday vacation better.”
“Rule number one,” Jack started.
“You two won’t fight, we won’t fight,” she said, glancing between them. “You don’t spend…that much time with each other on a daily basis, but now we’re going to be together for a whole week and you’re stuck with each other. So, get used to each other now.”
Danny almost laughed, regretting this rule. He hadn’t thought of that. One week with Jazz? He looked back at his sister, who was wearing a similar expression.
“Rule number two,” Jack continued.
“Nobody goes after a ghost alone, not even your father and I. These are new…beings to us, and until we do some research and gather enough information, I want to make sure that these creatures can’t do anything to harm us,” Maddie said.
Danny was sure that wouldn’t be a problem. He’d decided that this was going to be a vacation and that even if he did encounter a ghost, he wasn’t going to worry about it. Not even if it was Vlad. Well, maybe if it was Vlad, but you get the point.
“And rule number three,” Jack finished.
“Have fun you guys!” She clapped her hands together. “There’s so much to see and do and we’re all here together; a real family vacation.” She grinned. “Come on, let’s begin right now!”
All three doors opened simultaneously and Danny stretched as he slid out the door and into the cool night. His sister soon followed and laid a hand on his shoulder, waiting until both Jack and Maddie were out of earshot before starting up an interview.
“You talked in your sleep. Were you having a nightmare?”
Danny stopped, regretting ever falling asleep in the first place. Yes, he’d had one, but what else was new? But he hadn’t realized he’d spoken in his sleep. Running a hand through his hair, he said, “Yeah…” but didn’t elaborate. He rapidly found an escape route and went to join his parents, who were unloading their luggage from the trunk.
“Careful with that one Jack,” Maddie said as the man laid a heavy case upon the ground. He assumed it was full of weapons and cringed, feeling even more awkward. They’d brought a whole arsenal—perhaps for a war. The thought…was disturbing.
By the time that they’d unloaded everything, walked into the entrance, and checked in, Danny was certain he’d spend more time counting the things he couldn’t do more than the things he could.
On the first and top floor were pools, there was an arcade and rec room on the first floor as well, and an old movie theatre on the northern side of the building. But the design was amazing—they had old fashioned, pulley elevators and beautifully arranged water fountains, exotic fish tanks, an old Irish church, and an old library stacked with books from ceiling to floor.
The manager of the hotel who, of course, had been expecting the Fenton family, greeted them cheerfully as they finished checking in.
“Ah, the Fentons, am I correct?”
He was a short, balding man with a round belly and bright eyes. His name tag read, “Mr. Stanley, Executive Manager,” and like the hostess, he was wearing a maroon colored uniform.
Danny thought this statement was rather funny considering it wasn’t hard to pick out his parents from the crowd, with their hazmat jumpsuits.
“Your children, I presume?” he asked, shaking all of their hands.
Maddie rested her hand on his shoulder. “This is our son, Danny—he’s fifteen—and our daughter Jazmine, who’s sixteen.”
“Pleasure to meet you all,” Mr. Stanley replied, beaming. “And I really do hope your accommodations will suit you well.”
“I’m sure they will,” Maddie assured him.
“You wouldn’t happen to have fudge…as a hotel…gift, right?” Jack wondered absentmindedly.
Mr. Stanley blinked several times before getting it. “I…can perhaps arrange something to fit your needs Mr. Fenton.” Jazz, blushing, smacked her forehead loudly and he smiled at her, seeming amused. “Please, let me show to your rooms.”
“Rooms? As in, I get my own room?”
“Duh,” Jazz said, shoving him playfully. “I’m not staying in the same room as you. Not when you snore like that.”
“Remember rule number one?” he offered, layering on the sarcasm. Mr. Stanley began to lead them towards the left, down a long hallway with dim lights.
“So when do we get to see these ghosts?” Jack asked automatically.
Mr. Stanley frowned. “They come and go as they please like animals looking for food,” he said. “Disgusting things they are…and they keep frightening away my customers. I’ll be glad to be rid of them.”
“That’s what we’re here for,” Maddie said.
“I like your plan,” Mr. Stanley told her. Danny listened, understanding. This hadn’t been a random vacation—it had been arranged and planned ahead of time. “If that machine works, I won’t have to see another orb again.”
“What machine?” he dared to ask.
Neither adult heard him and Mr. Stanley continued. “I’m getting so tired of those things running around this place like they own it. I don’t see them paying the bills or fixing the problems…no, they float around here like they’re a bunch of wild animals. And they leave destruction in their wake, you can be sure of that. I’ve got proof.”
“We’ll be sure to take care of them,” Jack stated.
“I can’t tell you how thankful I am that you’re doing this,” he said. He glanced back at Jazz and Danny, who were trailing behind. “What about you? Are you ghost hunters as well?”
“Sort of,” they replied together, giving each other looks before rolling their eyes at the same time.
Maddie laughed. “Ghost hunters in training. Perhaps we can get some practice in here at the hotel.”
“Oh, by all means, do so. The sooner they’re gone, the better I say,” he said. He stopped in front of a door. “Ah, here we are. Rooms 129, 130, and 131.”
Mr. Stanley followed the Fenton adults into room 131, leaving Jazz and Danny in the hallway. She peered curiously over at him, walking especially slow towards room 129. “So…interesting conversation, huh?”
“Yeah,” he said softly. “But, what the heck, this is a vacation. No ghost fighting for me, which means no Danny Phantom.” Jazz tossed him a room key and he caught it with one hand, still thinking. “Hey, maybe if I’m lucky, I won’t even see a ghost.”
“You’re dreaming,” she said, turning the door handle.
“Yeah…” he muttered. Only in his dreams would he ever not have to see ghosts on a daily basis. But hey, he could get lucky.
He turned the key and pushed the door open, slipping inside the dark room. His hand found the light switch and he walked inside.
It was a small, but varied room, unique in its own way. There were several framed photography shots upon the ivory colored walls. In the middle of the room were two king sized beds and on the complete opposite side, an entertainment center, complete with a tv and dvd player. A desk was beneath the window on the far wall and a bathroom was to his left. An adjoining door, most likely hooking to his parents’ room, was next to it. It was cooler than the hallway, but he didn’t mind the cold.
He walked in farther, rolling his suitcase behind him and closed the door with a sigh. The room seemed perfect actually, although he wasn’t sure why he had two beds, and for once, he had a room to himself. His parents had definitely made certain that he and his sister would be happy and he grinned to himself, feeling grateful.
At least he wouldn’t have to listen to her rag on him all of the time. Danny set his bags down, flipping the door card over and reading, “There’s a good reason for you not to knock right now” and grinning. He turned around and started, jumping back nearly into the door.
There was now a young man standing by the entertainment center and reading a newspaper. He smiled in greeting and threw the newspaper onto the desk, but it fazed past the hardwood and landed with a soft plop onto the floor. He stretched and yawned, raising a hand to his mouth. “Wow, I’m beat. Mind if I get this bed? I like the window view.”
Please R&R! The next chapter gets even more interesting, but it’s in my head. Don’t have a sneak peek, sorry.
Next Updates (Give me some time though): It’s The Fear (Ch. 3), Stand Up (Ch. 2), Life Sucks And Then You Die (Ch. 6), Relinquish (Ch. 2), The Boy At The Rock Show (Ch. 6) and Fastball (Ch. 5).
Lateraina Wolf